#WriterWednesday: WriterlyLinks And #WritersLife 29-01-20 - #AmWriting

All you can do is try to write as well as you can.
~Harold Pinter

It wasn't a very productive writing week, since I lost a day to people who don't consider people who work from home to be doing anything important, so either show up late, or don't show up at all (see yesterday's post if you want to know more about that) and Lilie has decided nap time is over-rated. On top of that, I spent some time messing about with adding mention of Artemis the Hermann's Tortoise to my profiles, and rebranding my "Friends Of Furkid Friday" feature, now that not all my kids are the furry kind.

The rebranding doesn't officially happen until February. However, as you may have noticed if you check out the page tabs above, "Friends Of Furkid Friday" is changing to "PetKid Pals" in the very near future. I'm leaving the mention of "Furkid Friday" in the posts until the middle of February, because I had posts already scheduled until then that I'd sent the links out for, and it changes the url if I change the title before the post is published, which can cause problems with people trying to find the post via the links I gave out (there's a way to make it not do that, but I couldn't be bothered to mess with it). But I changed all the labels so they'll all fall under the "PetKid Pals" label, and any guests we have after February 14th will be refered to with the new label. Glad I decided to do this when we only had about two dozen posts for me to fix the labels on, and before I got the interviews I'm expecting in the near future for some pets who will be featured over the next couple of months. Took long enough as it was!

So, like I said, it wasn't a very productive writing week. But I'm not complaining, since I'd have wanted those things done sooner or later anyhow. Besides, it was probably good for my story to sit for this week before I start the rewrites on it. Rewrites it needs very badly, since it's a very rough first draft, like I said in last week's post. That's often the way though. So, assuming I can get Lilie to remember why naps are a good thing, this week I can start working on making a mess less complicated.

Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts.
~Anne Lamott

In other news: I was a guest over on the blog of fellow author, Mae Clair, last Thursday (January 23rd 2020) talking about why I write for children. You can read the post here, if you're interested.

You don’t choose a story, it chooses you.
~Robert Penn Warren

Anyway, if you're stuck for story ideas, there are plenty of great posts to help inspire you in among the posts for StoryStorm 2020. So, if you haven't done so, you should check those out. Also, here are some novel tips for writers to beat a creative crisis.

There are significant moments in everyone's day that can make literature. That's what you ought to write about
~Raymond Carter

OK. Now let's talk about your characters, starting with these things to consider when naming characters.

Next, here are some keys to writing great dialogue, so you can keep yours interesting.

No matter who says what in your story, check out this post with some things to think about when it comes to the hero archetype.

Also, if your characters are seeming a bit flat, here are some ways to spice up your characters. Just remember to consider cause and effect, and ensure your characters behaviour makes sense, regardless of whether they're the hero, part of the supporting cast, or the villain.

I want to write about characters who are earnest in what they’re trying to accomplish. Villains don’t see themselves as villains — that’s what interests me. No one wakes up and says, "What kind of monster am I going to be today?"
~Patrick Ryan

Regardless of who might be in your story, or the kind of character they are, if they're involved in a fight, you might want to have a look at this advice on how to construct gripping fight scenes.

Additionally, if your story involves a gathering quest, take a look at these ways to keep a gathering quest interesting, so you can make sure yours doesn't get too boring and repetitive for your readers.

Writing is not different from life—you want variety, you want refreshment, and you want balance.
~Alice Walker

Someone on one of the sites I get these links from shared some lesson's she'd learned from doing NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). So, check out her lessons on planning ahead, illiminating distractions, and perserverance, especially if you're thinking of doing Camp NaNo in April, or NaNoWriMo in November, this year.

Whether you plan to participate in Camp NaNo, NaNoWriMo - or any other writing challenge - this year, or not, if you're a beginning writer, or someone who's coming back to writing after a long break, this is why writing every day (at first) could make starting a little easier. If you can't write every day - which, let's face it, is the reality for a lot of people - at least make it regular enough that a habit can form. After all, practice is the 1 tool you need to become a better writer this year. Like I said, you don't have to be writing every single day. I mean, it's quite likely writing every day won't make you more successful - but this daily habit might. Also, writing regularly is the kind of planning you should be doing more of as a writer, because no one starts out a good writer, so you have to write regularly if you want to become one.

Anyone who says he wants to be a writer and isn’t writing, doesn’t.
~Ernest Hemingway

Speaking of progressing with your writing this year: if you don't have any writing goals for 2020, there's still time to make some. So, if you need to do that - or if you already did, but want to assess your goals now we're a month in to 2020 - remember the S.M.A.R.T. guide to goal setting for 2020.

Whatever your goals may be, good luck with them! When you reach each stage of completion, you can enjoy the cookie at the corner of your desk - or whatever your personal reward is.

Finish what you're writing. Whatever you have to do to finish it, finish it.
~Neil Gaiman

By the way, if you're in the editing phase of your work, don't forget to watch for homophones.

Finally, whether you're a writer, or prefer to just enjoy the books of others, here's a 2020 literary calender, so you can check out book related dates you might want to do something for this year, like J K Rowling's birthday, Hobbit Day, read an eBook week, etc.

#WriterWednesday: WriterlyLinks And #WritersLife 15-01-20 - #AmWriting

In case you missed my post announcing it last week: "Puppy Poems And Rodent Rhymes" is now available in audio, narrated by Suzan K Hennen. You can find the purchase links for all available formats via the post I just linked to, or simply go buy the book from Audible.

If you'd like to get to know Suzan a little, you can check out her recent narrator interview, which went live on December 27th 2019.

Poetry is subconscious conversation, it is as much the work of those who understand it and those who make it.
~Soniaa Sanchez

As I mentioned would be the case in my first post for the year, with that announcement officially made, we're 100% caught up with everything involved in making all my books available in the various formats I offer. Which are multiple eBook formats, paperback, and audio, for anyone who might be new here. This means I'm free to let the publisher hat sit on the shelf for a bit while I work on producing new content. Something I'm glad to be able to do, let me tell you. After all, the writing is the best part of producing books. Well, actually, the best part is when someone reads the books, and then I find out they enjoyed them. That's why I do the less fun stuff required to publish my poems and stories after I'm done writing them. But the writing is the best part of the aspects of producing books I'm in control of.

You have to simply love writing, and you have to remind yourself often that you love it.
~Susan Orlean

I've booked a cover creation slot with one of my cover artists for April though, so I will have to start wearing my publisher hat again in a couple of months. For now though, I get to just focus on enjoying some writing sessions.

Anyway, I've been keeping an eye out for links for you between enjoying writing sessions and doing other things, so let's see what links I've managed to gather for you over the past couple of weeks, shall we?

First of all, does your workspace affect your writing? Short answer: it probably does, though perhaps more so for some than others. Check out the post I just linked to for ways you can make the energies of yours work for you rather than against you.

OK, so you have your writing space sorted out. Now, let's get writing!

What? You want to, but you're struggling to get motivated? Well, perhaps this guide to writing when you're feeling unmotivated, or this (almost) foolproof method for lifting yourself out of a writing slump, will help. If not, why not try these hacks to instantly finding the motivation to write, even when you don't feel like it. You're welcome.

All you need to do is write one word after another. Don’t think about the whole novel, or about what you’ve written, just think about the next word.
~Karen Woodward

Of course, sometimes you just need to hear more stories to make more stories.

Don't forget, if you're stuck for story ideas, there are plenty of great posts to help inspire you in among the posts for StoryStorm 2020. So, if you haven't done so, you should check those out.

When you have your idea and are ready to write, here's a simple writing exercise that might change your craft forever. It does work as well, so could potentially help you get that first draft written.

By the way, it doesn't matter when you're doing the first draft - and definitely doesn't if you're doing the stream of conciousness writing mentioned in the above paragraph - but when it comes to the revisions, don't forget, the start of your story needs these puzzle pieces to hook your reader. So make sure you include them.

Don’t write it right, just write it—and then make it right later.
~Tara Moss

Don't forget to make use of these laws of foreshadowing in your story, and build up suspense for your readers. But use them well, because they can be over used. Everything in moderation, after all.

Next, let's talk about character archetypes, complete with a trick to using them without over-populating your story.

Also, here's an interesting comparison between magical powers and psychic abilities. So, are they interchangeable? Feel free to share your thoughts on the matter.

No matter the kinds of abilities your characters may or may not have, remember that your stories are a mirror, so think about what you see when you look at what you have written, and what others will see when they read it.

Whatever you describe to another person is also a revelation of who you are and who you think you are. You cannot describe anything without betraying your point of view, your aspirations, your fears, your hopes. Everything.
~James Baldwin

Regardless of what your story is about, here's some advice for how to write a strong resolution.

No matter how your story ends, do you know what the hardest thing about being a writer is? The hardest part about being a writer is that you are not 'just' a writer, and have to be other things too. But that's a good thing. After all, what would you have to write about if you weren't those other things too?

Whatever you are besides being a writer, writers: find your light in the darkness, and remember you are not always going to love writing, but that's OK.

Ask yourself in the stillest hour of the night: Must I write?
~Rainer Maria Rilke

Another hard thing about being a writer - especially if you want to be a published author, and want people to buy your books - is marketing. It doesn't help that marketing trends are constantly changing, and what worked yesterday may not work today. So, if you're starting to think about what to do to market your book, you might want to take a look at this post on how to market your book in 2020, and these social media marketing tips for authors.

Finally, whether you're a writer or not, if you have a blog, don't forget to make your blog user-friendly. Though it doesn't say this in the post I just linked to, this should include making it accessable for disabled readers, such as visually impaired readers who may be using screen readers, for which things like pictures with no description, background music, etc, are a big issue. That's another argument for not using word verification... It's not easy - in fact, sometimes it's impossible - for blind people to do. The only reason one of those word verification things appears on my blog is it won't go away, even though I've told it not to have it on there. As I say in the comments section though, you should be able to ignore it and just hit "publish" for your comment to post anyhow. If I figure out how to actually make it go away, I'll get rid of it completely. Anyone else with a Blogger blog know how to do that? If so, I'd appreciate your help in doing so. Thanks in advance.

#WriterWednesday - #Christmas Day 2019 Edition + The #Smashwords End Of Year #eBook #Sale

Merry Christmas! I hope that you're simply having a wonderful Christmas time.

At least, I hope you were before you started reading this, because I'm going to assume your holiday celebrations are over - or at least that you're between holiday activities, and have some free time - or you wouldn't be reading this. Right?

So, with that in mind, on to those writerly links I collected for you before (mostly) stepping away from the computer for the holidays, starting with this reminder of the 85K90 Challenge, which is something those of you wishing challenges like NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) would happen in the quieter months of the year might want to check out, since the aim of it is to get your novel written in the first quarter of the year (January through March). It also gives you 90 days to get your book written, rather than the 30 days NaNoWriMo gives you, meaning you have a lower word count to aim for each day than you would if you were doing NaNoWriMo. It even has months set aside for editing and publishing, so can technically keep you on track all year, and maybe even have you published in time for next Christmas, especially if you plan to self-publish. Check out the link I just posted for full details on how the challenge works.

There's also STORYSTORM in January, NaNoEdMo (National Novel Editing Month) in March, NaPoWriMo (National Poetry Writing Month) in April, Camp NaNoWriMo in both April and July, and NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) itself in November, if you need inspiration for other writing related challenges to sign up for next year. I dare say there are others I've forgotten or don't know about too. I've mentioned all of the ones listed in this paragraph on my blog before, but if you don't know what any of them are and want to check them out, a quick search will easily provide you with details, so either find my posts about them, or just type the challenge/event name in to your favourite search tool.

Ah, but should you plan your whole year? Well, that's up to you. But it might be an idea to have some kind of plan, especially if you want to do some of the challenges I mentioned above, or have your own writing goals you'd like to achieve. So, if you're thinking it might be a good idea to plan your whole year, take a look at the post I just linked to for a suggestion on how you might approach doing that.

Just remember, when you're planning your year, to schedule in some rest time, and don't over do it. Is writing supposed to be hard? Yes. But don't make it so hard you get burned out. Look after yourself while chasing your writing dreams. Please. Don't forget about the emotional side of the writing life. Look after your health; both physical and mental.

I mean, it's true that there is no time for 'someday'. But you do need to take care of yourself while doing the things. Plus, you need to allow yourself time to be bored, because it's good for a writer to be bored.

Anyway, here's an excellent post that answers the question, "Are people who write only as a hobby 'real' writers?" Short answer: yes. As long as you write on at least a semi-regular basis, and want to call yourself one, you're a writer.

Remember: while there are plenty of extremely valid reasons to not be writing regularly - or as often as you'd like to be writing, or whatever your personal situation is - make sure they really are valid reasons you're using, and if you are making excuses for not reaching your writing goals, rather than using valid reasons, leave your excuses at the door.

OK, so you're writing. Since that's the case, you might want to check out these tips to writing semi-coherent dialogue, and this advice on what to avoid with internal monologue.

Next, here's a great post that explains how objects tell your story.

Finally, if you got a new eReader for Christmas - or even if you didn't, but just want to get some new books at great prices - you may be interested to hear that the Smashwords end of year sale is now on, and you can go here to check out all the books on sale. Of course, I've enrolled my own books, which you can find via my Smashwords profile. Every one of my books is enrolled at 50% off, with coupon code SEY50 (which should be automatically applied when you add any of my books to your cart on Smashwords, but I'm giving you the code anyhow, just in case). So, if you want to get my books for half their usual price, you can do so exclusively on Smashwords through January 1st. Since my books are made available in all formats Smashwords offers, and they offer multiple eBook formats, this means there will be a format that works for you, regardless of whether you read eBooks via a Kindle, an iPad, your computer, or whatever. So, what are you waiting for? Grab some eBook bargains while you can!

#WriterWednesday - January 30th 2019

Up until this past weekend, I'd only managed to write two poems all month. However, I was able to take advantage of a bit of free time this weekend to get a few hundred words written - some on a short poem, the rest on a story. It's not much, but it's better than I had been managing. I've not been making my writing the priority it should be lately, mainly because it's the thing most people seem to want me to let slide whenever I just can't do it all, so it's just easier to let it be the thing I don't get to. But also a little because I've been procrastinating. Mainly the former, but I'll admit I'm guilty of the latter sometimes too. I'm hoping, after I've had surgery and recovered from it, I can change that. I could have started trying now, but decided to let things remain as they are for the time being. I will fix things though, because I have to write, and I'm missing it.

Sticking with the theme of the above paragraph: this is why it's so hard to sit down and get your writing done. Also, procrastination is a self-perpetuating cycle, so if you're as guilty of it as I have been over the past couple of weeks, check out the tips in the post I just linked to. Maybe they can help you make your writing the priority it should be. After all, there are reasons why your writing matters - even if you aren't making any money from it. So, how do you keep the passion for writing going?

However you do it, here's a reminder to always write down your 'shower thoughts' and those random thoughts and ideas from other times and places too. After all, one of those ideas might have the potential to be something great one day, and it would be a shame if they were lost forever.

Struggling with writers' block? Here are some more tips for where to find ideas for writing a story. Just don't wait around for ideas.

Remember: when you have your list of ideas, or random thoughts and observations, you can always recycle them when you're ready to write your next story or poem. Or, if you're not sure which to work with, you can go on a speed date with your stories.

OK, let's assume you're managing to avoid procrastinating, have your ideas, know which you're ready to work with right now, and are writing away. With that being the case, you might want to think about how you can write large.

Do you have any geologists in your story? Then you might like to take a look at this guide to being a geologist, so you can make sure you're making your geologist character believable.

Are you writing flash fiction? Is it set in a world you created yourself? Then read this post for some tips on how to build a fantasy world in flash fiction.

Now you have a first draft, it's time to do some revising, and tackle those plot holes.

Rewrites and edits are important. However, you need to avoid getting up in that vicious cycle of rewrites and edits, where your book is never quite finished in your opinion, even if it really is. With that in mind, here are some signs you're afraid of finishing your manuscript.

So... Here's how to write better: a quick guide.

Finally, if you're a writer too, how's your writing going? If you're doing any kind of writing challenge - like STORYSTORM or the 85k90 Challenge, just to give two examples of writing challenges I know have been going on during January - how are you doing with it? I'd love to know, so tell me in the comments.

#WriterWednesday - January 23rd 2019

There are dark (and not so dark) parts of writing no one ever sees. We writers don't talk much about them for whatever reason. But they exist. So, maybe we should talk about them more? What do you think?

Anyway, if you can't write consistently, here's how to fix that. Reward systems aren't just for kids, you know. *wink*

Remember: the only one holding you back is you.

Do you write for children? Are you looking for story ideas? How about tapping in to your childhood... With a twist, does that inspire you enough? I'll be very surprised if it doesn't.

Whatever age you write for, if you're a writer who writes in the fantasy genre, you may like to take a look at this list of fantasy sub-genres, to help you get your book listed right when you're publishing it.

Regardless of what kinds of stories you write, do your characters speak with different accents? Then take a look at this post on how to convey accents in fiction writing.

Next, here are some tips on ways to build suspense in your novel.

So, here's why you'll never write everything you want to write, and why that's OK.

But, what do you do when a story is tough to tell? You find a way to tell it anyhow, because that's the thing with stories: they need to be told, so they can be shared, maybe touch a few hearts, and make the world a better place.

With that in mind, it's only natural that now you've written your book, you want people to read it. Some people price their books... Or some of their books... Free to encourage this. But, the big question is: should you really offer your book for free? That's totally up to you. Personally, I do have one book that's permafree, which - if you don't know, but are interested - is "Frank The Friendly Ogre" (available from Smashwords, Amazon, iBooks, and some other eBook retailers).

No matter how much you price your books for on most retailers, if you're looking for another platform to potentially get a few extra sales, you might consider publishing book bundles with Bundle Rabbit. I don't use it myself, but I've heard good things about it, and it's an option, if you're interested.

So... What is your dream, and how will you make it come true?

#WriterWednesday - January 9th 2019

In case you missed the post about it at the end of December: "The Great Tadpole Rescue" is now available in audio via Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. The narrator is Jenny Bacon, who I've worked with on several of my other titles. You can find more details about the book, along with a variety of purchase links, in the post I just linked to, including ones for the paperback and eBook versions of the book. But here's a quick link for those who want to buy the book on Audible.

Speaking of my books: the Amazon versions of my books are now all linked, and listed on my Amazon author page. Are yours? If not, you should probably fix that. Not sure how to? This article will tell you how to combine editions on your Amazon sales page.

Also, the Kindle version of "Frank The Friendly Ogre" is now listed as free, like the eBook version is everywhere else. I won't bore you with details of why that took until now to achieve. So, you naturally still have to pay for the paperback and audio book versions, because of production costs. But you can get the eBook for free everywhere it's sold now.

In other news: I recently wrote a short guest post comparing the accessibility of Smashwords and Amazon, based on self-published authors who are using those publishing platforms while using JAWS and Firefox (what I use). It went live on January 1st, if you didn't see it and would like to read it.

Enough about me though.. Let's talk about you. So...

Here's how to achieve your 2019 goals, if you have goal lists for this year - whether writing related or not.

By the way, do you ever just sit quietly, doing nothing, until you get bored? If not, maybe you should, especially if you're a bit stuck for ideas for your writing. All writers must learn to be bored, at least some of the time. Remember to give yourself the gift of muse time, during the holidays, and throughout the rest of the year. I'm sure you can figure out where your muse hides, and remember to celebrate the weird stuff.

Speaking of your muse: here's a fun post with some suggestions for when you get an idea during bed time. You can take them as seriously as you like. *wink*

So, what if someone steals your high concept book idea? Well, if you really want to do something to try and avoid it, the post I just linked to does have some suggestions. However, the short answer to that question is actually that it doesn't matter. As long as they don't totally steal your book, writing it the way you do, you don't really need to worry. There are only so many plots out there. It's the telling that makes a story unique. So, just write your story, and don't worry about it. That's my advice, anyhow.

Speaking of writing your story....What is amaphora, and how can you use it in fiction writing? Check out the post I just linked to, and you'll find out.

Next, here's an informative post to help with getting to grips with passive voice, and one with some tips on how to write thoughts in fiction.

If your fiction feels a bit stale, try one of these fiction writing ideas to revitalize your story.

If the problem is with your characters, try creating characters with inherent conflict, and see if that improves things. Chances are, it will.

By the way, if you're thinking of producing your book in audio using ACX, as I myself have done, you might like to check out this mini-series of posts Don has put together on creating an audio book using ACX. Here's part 1, here's part 2, and here's part 3.

Finally, if you're looking for some promotional opportunities, don't forget there are plenty of bloggers out there willing to help. Sue has offered guest spots on her blog, and Don is inviting you to come be interviewed for his 2019 author interview series, for example. There are many others, and I'm not going to list them here, but a quick search should give you a list. Just remember to read any guidelines they have listed first.

#WriterWednesday: Looking Back At 2018, And Ahead To 2019 - The #Writing Edition

Writing is a miserable, awful business. Stay with it. It is better than anything in the world.
~Ann Patchett

I told you in yesterday's post how last year was for me in general, and what my goals for 2019 are in most areas of my life. But now it's time to take a look back at how 2018 was for me as an author, and what writerly goals I have for 2019.

Despite the health issues, and everything else I ended up dealing with, 2018 actually wasn't too bad of a year for me as an author, though it could have been better. I didn't do everything I'd planned to, but did a lot of it, and even did a couple of things I hadn't planned to. I think I did OK overall.

You can read full details of my writing goals for 2018 here, but here's the short version of what my writing goals were:

*Continue audiobook production of my backlist.
*Finish and publish that pirate themed adventure story.
*Get my new pet themed poetry collection published.
*Update my website and social media profiles so they mention audiobooks too.
*Change the paperback links on my Smashwords book pages so it lists the links for Amazon instead.
*Just write, and enjoy the process.

So, how did I do?

*I did continue audiobook production, though I didn't get all my backlist available in audio like I'd hoped to. I now have almost all my backllist available in audio though, despite production delays, and the need to dissolve the contracts for some of my books. Those not yet produced are expected to become available in early 2019... I hope.
*I didn't get my pirate themed adventure story finished and published, because real life got in the way. I probably could have squeezed in some writing time some days that I didn't, but I was already juggling so much that I let my writing take a back seat, because I just couldn't do it all. So I haven't made as much progress on the story as I'd have liked. There's progress, but not as much as I'd have liked, and it's nowhere near being ready for publication yet.
*Both the eBook and paperback versions of my new pet themed poetry collection - entitled "Puppy Poems And Rodent Rhymes" - were published in March. The audio version is hopefully coming soon.
*My social media profiles were updated back in January. I added mention of audio books, and took the opportunity to do a slight rewrite on my profile while I was at it. It took longer for the website to be done - and there are a few updates yet to happen on it - but I did send the updates to the person responsible for doing them in January. It's not my fault if he didn't get to hem.
*I change the paperback links on my Smashwords book pages back in January. Thankfully, I didn't have to change them again when CreateSpace merged with KDP during the second half of this year.
*Writing time... Yeah... I really didn't do well with that. During the first couple of months, I didn't get even close to enough writing time for my liking. So many other things were going on, including the completion of many of the tasks on this list. Then I was dealing with medical issues, and spent several months either in hospital, or at home feeling unwell, so let my writing take a back seat in order to achieve the other million things I was juggling. During the last couple of months I was feeling a lot better, but had a bunch of things I wanted to finish before the end of the year, so continued to let my writing take a back seat. So, yeah... There wasn't as much time to just write as I'd planned, or would have liked. I did enjoy what writing time I did get though... Does that count?

As it turned out, I also did a couple of things not on my list:

*Added links to Audible on my books' Smashwords pages, since Smashwords made the option to list where your books are for sale in audio available in June, so I figured I'd make use of it.
*Wrote a story about our Westie girl, Lilie, which was published in August. The story - which is called "Where's Noodles?" - is already available as an eBook, paperback, and audio book.
*Made Kindle versions of my books available. So, now those of you with Kindles can buy your eBooks directly from Amazon, if you want to. This does not make any difference to the versions already available from other eBook retailers, such as Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, etc. Also, Kindle friendly versions of all my books are still - and will continue to be made - available to purchase via Smashwords too.

Like I said, it wasn't too bad of a year, even though I didn't complete all the goals I set myself. I achieved a lot, including some things I hadn't planned, even with everything going on in my life. So I'm not complaining, and am considering it a reasonably good year.

Still, I'm hoping for a better 2019. In particular, I'm crossing my fingers for a year with more writing time in it, since I have a lot of story ideas begging for my attention, and I want to be able to share my animal stories, fairy tales, etc, with you.

So, what are my goals for 2019?

1. Finish writing, and then publish, the adventure story. I mean it this time.
2. Finish getting the last of my backlist available as audio books.
3. Write and publish at least one other story.
4. Write more poems towards my next poetry collection.

I've got the key to my castle in the air, but whether I can unlock the door remains to be seen.
~Louisa May Alcott

Of course, my upcoming surgery will put a bit of a spanner in the works, especially considering I don't have a laptop at the moment, can't exactly be carrying something as heavy as the brailler around immediately after surgery, don't get on with the document writing thingy on my Kindle, and find it tricky to do more than a very short piece of writing with my phone. This means that writing while I'm in hospital, and immediately afterwards, isn't really going to be an option. At least, no more than a few brief scribbles. But afterwards... When I'm home, and have had a bit of recovery time... I hope, will involve plenty of writing. I'll also be trying to get some writing time in before I go in for surgery.

Oh, by the way... There's still time to register for STORYSTORM 2019, in case you want to do that. Registration closes on January 7th.

Anyway, how's your writing going? Did you have any writing goals in 2018? If yes, how did you do with them? Did you meet your 2018 writing goals? If not, it's OK. Yes, it really is. After all, there is a difference between failure and not meeting your writing goals. No matter how well you did, let me know in the comments, so I can help you look back on all you've accomplished!

This is the start of a whole new year, and another chance to start fresh with a whole new set of goals. Speaking of which, are you making any goals for 2019? If so, what are they? I'd love for you to tell me in the comments. Whatever they are, good luck, and remember these 12 things.

#Writing Wednesday - February 7th 2018

In case you missed yesterday's post: "Goodies For Grandmother" is now available in audio, narrated by Jenny Bacon. It's available to buy from Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. Purchase links are in the post I just linked to, along with links for the eBook and paperback versions, if you'd rather one of those.

I'm working with Jenny on a few more of my titles; Jenny has agreed to do the narration for four more of my stand alone stories. I'm pleased to be working with her again, because I love what she does with my books, and think she's a delight to work with in general.

I'm also pleased to once more be working with Danny Letham, James Watkins, JD Kelly, and Jerry Fischer. The first three - Danny, James, and JD - are each narrating another of my books, and Jerry is working on another two. I enjoyed working with all four of them in the past, so I was delighted when they accepted my latest offers, and look forward to seeing what they do with the books they've agreed to narrate for me this time.

Yet another of my stand alone stories is being produced by a narrator by the name of Andrew Pond. Andrew is a narrator I haven't worked with before, but I was pleased with his audition - obviously, or I wouldn't have sent him an offer - and have found him to be a delight to work with too.

It seems I've been pretty lucky with most of my narrators, since most of them are people I would willingly work with again. All those mentioned in this post come under that catagory for sure!

Anyway, as you can see - both from this post and my post from two weeks ago - I've managed to cross a few things off my list of writing goals for this year already, and am well on the way to being able to make sure I can check off another. I've even got a little actual writing done, though not as much as I'd have liked to. Still,I'm pleased with how much I did do, especially considering how much time has been spent on the "publisher tasks" in the past month.

How are your own writing goals going so far? Are you on track? Or are you struggling already?

If you're going through the struggle most writers do at some point right now, here are some reminders to get you through 'the struggle'. However, this next post may be more what you need if you're struggling with finding the time to write. Oh, and you're never going to have a 'normal' schedule if you're a writer, so you might as well stop trying. Above all, remember to be true to yourself.

Oh, and if you participated in STORYSTORM, here's a post storystorm post to help you figure out what's next. Speaking of which, if you participated, how did you do? Did you get your 30 story ideas?

Either way, if you can't find your voice when it comes to writing your story, here's how to write shamelessly.

#Writing Wednesday - January 24th 2018

I've done a lot of writing related work during this past week, but very little actual writing, since I haven't really worked on the writing projects I actually want to be working on. It's frustrating, but the other tasks did need to be done, since they're an important part of the writing and publishing process, and it does feel good to get them out of the way. Yes, I could ignore them and just write. But then I wouldn't be sharing my stories and poems with the world like I am, and that would be sad, because stories and poems should be shared. At least, I think they should be. So I spent the past week working on the things I put in the "publisher tasks" catagory.

I got my profiles updated, and now they mention audio books instead of just eBooks and paperbacks. Then I sent the updates for my website to the person in charge of dealing with that (I do my social media accounts and blog myself, but am not personally responsible for maintaining my actual website). I also changed the links on my books' Smashwords pages so they have Amazon links in place of the CreateSpace eStore one, since - as I mentioned in previous posts - CreateSpace are no longer selling books directly from their own site. Plus, while I was on Smashwords sorting things, I updated my Smashwords interview. After that, I got more of my books set up for audio production, and even arranged who would be narrating some of them. Considering I've also written several blog posts, and managed to keep my inbox mostly under control... I even cleared it at one point... I think that counts as being a pretty productive week... Even if I still didn't spend as much time on the actual writing part as I'd hoped to.

So... All the stories I hadn't yet made available in audio are now in various stages of production, ranging from accepting auditions to heading for retail. I'll deal with setting up the project pages for my poetry books later.

Speaking of my audio books: "Cubby And The Beanstalk" is now available in audio - in case you missed that post. You can buy the audio version from Audible, Amazon, and iTunes; see the post I just linked to for links. The narrator is JD Kelly, who you can read more about in his recent narrator interview.

Like I said, it's been a pretty productive week... Even if actual writing time has been a bit thin on the ground, so to speak. I was being rather critical of myself, and struggling to feel positive about it due to not having done the thing I really wanted to do, despite the fact dealing with all the stuff took up most of my waking hours during the past week. But seeing it all written down in this post, and realizing just how much I actually did do, made me realize I actually achieved a lot. Maybe I should reward myself? Or maybe I'll just go for a nap...

You know, it's so easy to be critical of yourself and your own work. Do you find that? Is that critical voice getting in your way when it comes to coming up with story ideas? Don't worry. Just check out this post on keeping a dream journal, and using it to generate ideas. There are several other great posts among those for this year's STORYSTORM, so you may want to check those out too... Assuming you haven't already been doing so. And, hey, if you're participating in STORYSTORM 2018 and don't have as many ideas as you should have, remember that it's ok to fail.

OK, so you've got your idea(s). Good for you! Time to write! Oh, you can't concentrate? No problem. Just check out these tips to help you concentrate while writing. Better? If so, great! If not, I hope you find something that works for you.

Either way, do you want to inject some comedy in to your writing? Then read this post on the art of bantering for some tips on how to keep it fun - and entertaining - rather than hurtful. Unless insults your readers will find amusing - even if the characters don't - is what you were going for, in which case the post will be advice on what to avoid. Either way, you should consider the difference between playful banter and insults, and make sure to use the right one to get your message across, giving some consideration to the relationships between your characters when doing so.

Speaking of your characters: here are some ways you can choose a name for your characters, as well as some tips on describing your characters' physical appearance. Rachel has several other posts about creating characters and character development, so you may like to check those out.

Are you writing a series of books? Or, perhaps, you've already written one? Either way, check out this post for some tips on promoting a book series.

Whether it's a series or not though, here are some tips on figuring out your idea's potential marketability.

When the day comes that you reach the turning point you weren't expecting - and, yes, I do mean "when" not "if" - only you can decide how to go on. What will you choose? Whatever you choose, write the kind of content you enjoy reading whenever you can.

Finally, here are seven tips to being an indie author - in case you're planning on going that route when publishing your book, but new to the world of self-publishing.

#Writing Wednesday - January 17th 2018

I've done very little writing so far this month. Between getting ready to go away, actually going away, and then trying to catch up with things from being away... Well, you know how it is, I'm sure. I knew it would be the case. Anyway, I'm hoping to change that during the second half of this month, since I'm now caught up on the mountain of eMails I came home to.

For me it's time that's stopping me writing as much as I'd like to be. However, if your problem is finding ideas, check out some of the posts for STORYSTORM 2018 to help you get inspired. Posts like this one on how you can beg, borrow, or steal from yourself. If you're still struggling to find those ideas that are supposedly all around us, try adding the most important ingredient: yourself.

On the other hand, if you've got too many ideas, and they're all fighting to get your attention, this post on how to get a new, distracting idea out of your head (for now) may help you.

But, no matter how well you're writing is - or isn't - going, if you're a writer too, feel free to share your progress in the comments section of this post. Oh, and remember to stop memorizing so many writing rules. Rules are great sometimes, but don't let them stop you from being creative, and remember that most writing articles are only advice you can follow if you wish, rather than rules you must obey.

Speaking of which, here are some more articles I think are worth reading:

Are you writing something with ruins in? Then check out these tips to writing about ruins, and make it believable that they'd be the way they are.

This post about including unique weapons in your story is worth a read too, especially if you plan to do just that.

Hey, did you know there are nine types of characters in fiction? Well, you do now! Whatever kind of character you need for your story, here are seven helpful and fun ways to create characters. Don't forget that your supporting characters need love too.

Regardless of the characters your story contains though, remember to show, don't tell.

However, if writing poetry is more your thing, take a look at these ways to improve as a poet.

Finally, regardless of what you write, here's some advice for when writing reminds you you're not very good at this (yet).

#Writing Wednesday - January 10th 2018

"Filicity The Musical Platypus" is now available in audio - in case you missed my post about it at the end of December. It's narrated by Jenny Bacon, who has done a couple of my other books too. I love working with Jenny, and hope to have her narrate more of my books in the near future as well. Anyway, if you want to get your hands on a copy of the book in audio, you can do so via Audible, Amazon, or iTunes. If you'd rather an eBook or paperback version, that's an option too. Either way, check out the post I just linked to for more details on the book, as well as for purchase links.

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Are you an author/blogger or a bloggr/author? Either one is fine, but I'd love to know how you'd answer that question - assuming it applies to you. Personally, I've been feeling more like an author/blogger lately, but want to return to being more of a blogger/author. That's the reason for a certain blogging goal I have for 2018 (which you can read more about innext Monday's post).

Regardless of which you are, there's something you should beware of when it comes to strict writing routines. Since I can't stick to a daily routine, I don't have to worry too much about the dangerous consequence of writing routines. I wanted to make sure you were aware of it if you're a writer who writes to a routine though. Also, here's a post on writing with anxiety, in case that applies to you.

Regardless of how - or when - you end up writing your story, a hero's fate is not always simple... So give plenty of thought to how you will end your story.

No matter how you plan to end it though, the scenes and characters in your story need to be fleshed out, and food can often play a big part in that. With that in mind, here are some thoughts on food and drink for you to consider.

Writing a series? Here are some tips on writing a series, some more tips on writing a long series, and another post containing series writing tips. The author of these particular posts is one who I've shared much from recently. His name is Charles Yallowitz, and he's written an awesome fifteen book fantasy series, so I think it's safe to say he has some idea what he's talking about, or is good at pretending he does. Either way, his tips are worth checking out, and so are his books.

Anyway, if you're struggling to come up with writing ideas, check out the posts from this year's STORYSTORM, including this one on exploring culture and family tradition, and this one on taking inspiration from songs and rhymes that already exist - the latter being something I've done several times in the past with some of my poetry.

No matter what though, remember to write your own story.

Once you have your book, you'll want to let people know it exists. One way to do this is by making use of things like N. N. Light's new author services and packages. There are plenty of other bloggers out there happy to help you promote your work too, many of whom will do it for free.

Last, but certainly not least: while writing advice is often helpful, you need to consider how some writing advice can actually hurt you, and only make use of the writing advice that actually does work for you.

#Writing Wednesday: 2018 Goals

I did a post last week looking back at how 2017 was for me as an author. So, now let's take a look at my goals for this year. Here they are:

*Continue audiobook production until I'm caught up with making my backlist of books available in audio.
*Finish that pirate themed adventure story I keep promising you, and get it published in all the formats my books are now available in (eBook, paperback, and audio).
*Get my new pet themed poetry collection published. I have enough poems for it now, I just need to sort it ready to be published and arrange a cover for it. A clearer idea of a publication date will be revealed when I actually have one.
*Update my website and social media profiles so they mention audiobooks too (they currently only mention eBooks and paperbacks, despite around half my books now being available in audio).
*Change the paperback links on my Smashwords book pages so it lists the links for Amazon instead (they currently list the CreateSpace eStore links, despite the CreateSpace eStore being closed now).
*Just write, and enjoy the process.

How about you? Do you have any writing/publishing goals for 2018? If so, I'd love to know what they are. Tell me in the comments!

If you want to make some writing goals for 2018, but aren't sure what to pick, check out these ways to challenge yourself and level up your writing in 2018 for inspiration. Or, perhaps you want to focus on what you're not going to do this year instead? Either way, once you've made your goals, I'd love to hear what they are. As mentioned above, let me know in the comments.

Oh, and... There's still time to sign up for STORYSTORM 2018... If you want to, that is. I won't be signing up, but I always think the posts are great, so will be checking them out.

#Writing Wednesday - January 25th 2017

If you're an author, or even if you aren't, but are promoting the books of one, when you post any links to Amazon on your blog or social media sites, please try to make sure you're cleaning up your Amazon links.

Speaking of promotion - in particular authors promoting authors - fantasy author, Alex Butcher, has some new promotional opportunities available, which you may want to check out. Some are free, some cost, all are excellent opportunities for marketing/promotion.

Oh, and, by the way, if you're an author who spends time on social media, you should probably read these five mistakes authors make on social media, and avoid making them yourself. I'm pretty sure I don't do those things... Well, some of them I know for sure I don't do, and others I try not to do, and hope I succeed in avoiding doing them...

But... Anyway...

Why does your protagonist matter? Find out by reading the post I just linked to. Don't forget though... Antagonists are people too! Also, regardless of whether we're talking about your protagonist, your antagonist, or one of the supporting characters, if you need to get to know your characters more, you should check out the ultimate character questionaire, and have them reveal all to you as the questions are answered, so you can improve the reading experience of your fans by adding in some extra details to make your characters feel like real people. Oh, and don't forget your minor characters.

Speaking of all those extra details... Are you an underwriter who needs to flesh out your story? If so, here are the perils of being an underwriter, with some tips on how to expand on your story.

No matter what kind of writer you are though, here's a great post from one of the STORYSTORM gang on titlestorming... Just in case you could use some help coming up with a title for your work in progress.

Hey, are you bookclub ready? If so, great! If not, the post I just linked to contains some ideas for if you want to change that. Also, if you aren't, don't feel bad... I don't have bookclub questions/study guides for any of my books yet either. I may consider changing that at some point, but we'll see. In the meantime, any bookclubs out there can feel free to use this list of generic questions as prompts to discuss any of my books.

By the way, if you made some writing goals at the start of the year, and are already struggling to keep them, you may want to take a look at these tips to help you keep your writing resolutions, and these tips for tackling a new year of challenges
. Also, though I don't want to discourage you, please bear in mind the sweat and tears in writing... It takes work to turn a story idea in to a book fit to be read by others, so be prepared for that if you plan on writing a book.

Finally, if you want to write great fiction, stop using the "logical" side of your brain.

#Writing Wednesday - January 18th 2017

Hey, guess what? "Ulrike's Christmas" is now available in paperback!

I hadn't expected to be announcing this until at least next week, since the combination of several non-business days because of Christmas, the New Year, and the handful of bank holidays they insist on having around those dates, combined with the postal strikes around Christmas, made me think there would be more of a delay in the proof arriving than there was. But I'm not complaining.

Anyway, you can buy it from CreateSpace and Amazon already, and will soon be able to buy it from the other places that carry my paperback books too, such as Barnes & Noble, etc. If you click on the book's title in the first paragraph of this post, it will take you to where you can buy it directly from CreateSpace. Alternatively, you can search for it on your prefered Amazon site, or wait for it to become available on Barnes & Noble, or request that your favourite bookstore or library order a copy (if they're one of those who will order books published through CreateSpace).

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Are you an author too? Are you on social media sites like Twitter and Facebook? If you answered yes to both of those questions, you may want to take a look at these tips on how to get real on social media, and these on connecting with readers. These are tips I'm trying to follow myself. I'm good about the retweeting/sharing parts, and I'm getting in the habit of using hashtags, but need to work on the part where I just post random stuff from my day so people can connect with me as a person. It's not that I don't want to do it, it's that I either get busy and forget, or I feel like I have nothing to say that will seem interesting to people. Most often it's the latter, to be honest. I mean, are comments about the weather and what I had for breakfast really interesting to my followers?

Anyway...

Whether you're on social media or not, if you're a writer who finds you're struggling to finish the first draft of your current writing project, you might want to take a look at these tips for finishing off that first draft.

Alternatively, if your trouble is finding ideas, and your excuse for struggling to find them is being busy with work or other commitments, check out this post about how to STORYSTORM while you work.

Regardless of your progress in your current writing project, however, you may find this post about how to create unforgettable characters worth reading. Plus, this post containing tips for forging a hero group is a useful one to read if your story contains a group of characters who need to work together. Oh, and speaking of when you have a group of characters, here's a great post that will help you out with making sure there's a job for everyone in the party.

That's all for today... Until next time... Stay safe and warm!

#Writing Wednesday - January 11th 2017

Alright, now that Christmas - or whatever else you might have been celebrating - is totally over, we've welcomed the new year, we're done with the posts reviewing 2016, the holiday decorations have been taken down, and we've finished discussing my goals for 2017, it's time to return to our regular Wednesday posts, complete with a selection of links and articles I've gathered over the past couple of weeks, which I hope you will find interesting, and maybe even useful. So... Enjoy!

STORYSTORM started on January 1st 2017, and there have been some great posts as part of it. Like this one about how to mind and not mind when it comes to your writing, and story ideas. Or this one on how autocorrect and typos can inspire you, or this one on how a change of perspective can spark a story idea. Even if you didn't sign up for STORYSTORM, the posts are worth reading (don't worry if you didn't sign up... I didn't either, but I'm still reading the posts).

Anyway...

Are there any immortal beings in your current work in progress? If so, these seven tips to writing immortal characters may be just what you need to make them believable.

Immortal beings or not, here are some tips for creating tone through dialogue.

There are all sorts of rules when it comes to things like spelling and grammar, as you no doubt know. Now, most of them are sensible ones you should pay attention to, or at least have a really good reason for breaking. Sometimes, however, there are rules that are, quite frankly, kinda dumb, and you can feel free to ignore those. Here's an example of three such rules.

Every writer has their weakness. You know? That one thing you know you need to do differently next time, or not do at all, but still do it anyway. Regardless of what yours is, here's a post with some tips on how to sort out the weaknesses in your writing.

If one of your goals for this year is to get serious about marketing in 2017, you may want to read this article. Of course, there are other things you need to be doing when it comes to marketing too, but that's a great place to start. Another post you may want to take a look at is this one on internet marketing. Plus, this list of marketing ideas, and this list of 20 ways to get yourself out there as a writer, may give you some suggestions on things to try.

Remember, fellow authors, don't burn yourself out! Just bear that in mind, regardless of your writing goals for 2017.

Oh, and... Speaking of writing goals - or resolutions - for the year... Here are six tested tips for keeping your writing resolutions. I agree with the tips, though I disagree with something that was said in the post about publishing. The post says you can't choose whether you get published, so that's not a valid resolution, since you can't be in control of it. But that's not entirely true. If you're going down the traditional publishing route, sure, the choice as to whether or not you get published is out of your hands. However, if you self-publish, you can control when your book is published, and publishing your novel by x date is actually a valid resolution. Just saying.

Anyway... Last, but not least, for those of you wondering how you can show support for an author friend or family member, here are some ways you can support the author in your life.

#Writing Wednesday - December 21st 2016

First of all, here's an announcement about PiBoIdMo becoming STORYSTORM. If you're planning to make any new year's resolutions that involve doing more writing, you may want to check it out... Regardless of the genre or age range you write for.

Anyway...

In case you missed my post about it on Saturday: You can now buy Ulrike's Christmas from Smashwords. It's available in formats that work for just about any eReader or tablet, as well as for your average computer. It's also available from some other eBook retailers... Just like all my other books.

Even without the postal strikes currently happening over here, it would be impossible for me to get the paperback version of "Ulrike's Christmas" organized in time for those of you who prefer a physical book to have it in time for Christmas, and I'm not even going to try. One will become availabe in early 2017 though, and I'll post about it on this blog when that happens, which hopefully won't be too far in to the year.

I know this is really short, but I'm going to leave it at this for this week, since I'm sure you're all busy with holiday celebrations, or last minute arrangements for holiday celebrations, or whatever. Today is the Winter Solstice - in fact, this post is being scheduled to go up at the exact time of the astronomical event itself, which is on Wednesday December 21st 2016 at 10:44am UK time - and Sunday is Christmas day, after all. So happy whatever you're celebrating... Stay safe during your festivities!